State of Minnesota facing lawsuit over video game law

Stop me if you've heard this one before: a state legislature passes a law …

It looks like taxpayers in yet another state are going to find themselves on the hook for attorneys' fees because of a bad law. This time, the action shifts to the Land of 10,000 Lakes, where the Minnesota state legislature passed a bill that would require stores to post large signs informing those under age 17 that if they buy or rent video games rated AO (adults only) or M (mature), they will be fined US$25.

In a press release, the Entertainment Software Association called the law a "tortured effort to end run the First Amendment" and said that a federal lawsuit would be forthcoming.

Minnesota's law differs from those of other states in that it places the onus (and penalties) on those who actually buy the games, in this case, minors under age 17. What's especially troubling about the recently enacted legislation is the fact that the sponsor, State Sen. Sandra Pappas (DFL), never expected it to be enforced.

"We're not going to be prosecuting kids. We actually had it as a petty misdemeanor, but we changed it to a civil penalty. It's more important that parents just watch these games and monitor what kind of games their children are playing."

If the goal is parental education, there are many better—and cheaper—ways to go about it. Instead, the citizens of Minnesota are going to be stuck footing the bill to defend an unconstitutional law that not only should never have been passed, but was never intended to be enforced.

Minnesota will likely soon join the roster of states who have tried to pass video game legislation only to have it overturned: Illinois, California, Michigan, and Wisconsin, to name a few. Common sense prevailed in the state of Tennessee not too long ago when the sponsor of a similar bill withdrew it after realizing it faced certain defeat in the court system. It's also worth noting that the ESA does not automatically oppose all video game legislation. The trade group gave a big thumbs-up to a recent Maryland law that banned the sale of sexually explicit games to minors. Unfortunately, legislators in many other states seem all too eager to score points with part of their constituency by passing popular, but unconstitutional legislation.